The quest to reveal the identity of “D.B. Cooper” — the alias of the daredevil who hijacked a Northwest Orient flight from Portland to Seattle in 1971 and parachuted out of the plane with $200,000 — has come up empty for almost 50 years.
But the mystery of the only unsolved skyjacking in U.S. history has fueled a cottage industry of authors, documentary makers and self-appointed sleuths who believe they’ve done what the FBI could not. Or at least want to make some money claiming they have.
On Thursday, a whole new theory emerged from Carl Laurin, an 84-year-old pet sitter who lives in DeLand, Fla. Laurin, his Michigan publishing firm announced at a news conference, has written a memoir detailing the confessions of a longtime friend who supposedly committed the crime: Walter R. Reca, a former military paratrooper and intelligence operative.
Laurin’s $17.95 book is entitled, “D.B. Cooper & Me: A Criminal, a Spy, My Best Friend.”